Plants in compact cushions or tufts, blackish olivaceous. Stems 0.4-1.2 cm, central strand distinct. Leaves erect or erect-incurved, sometimes with apices recurved when dry, ovate-lanceolate, keeled distally, 1.5-2 mm, 1-stratose or sometimes 2-stratose in striae distally; margins plane throughout or sometimes narrowly recurved proximally, smooth, 2-stratose or multistratose distally; apices acute, usually ending in a short, fleshy, multistratose apiculus, usually rounded, but sometimes acute and hyaline tipped; costa percurrent or short-excurrent, smooth; basal marginal cells quadrate or short-rectangular; distal cells rounded, subquadrate, or short-rectangular, 5-10 µm wide, sometimes weakly bulging-mammillose, straight or weakly sinuose. Sexual condition dioicous. Capsule light brown, cupulate, or short-cylindric, 0.7-1 mm, sometimes lightly furrowed when dry; exothecial cells mostly irregularly elongate, mixed with patches of unevenly angular cells, very thick-walled; rim red; stomata present; peristome squarrose, 250-300 µm, reddish orange, densely to finely papillose, strongly perforated. Spores 14-16 µm, smooth or granulose.
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